Apple Inc. $AAPL Shares Bought by ARS Investment Partners LLC

Key Points

• ARS Investment Partners increased its Apple stake by 5.2% in the first quarter, adding 16,531 shares and bringing its total holdings to 334,764 shares worth about $84.96 million.
• Wall Street remains mostly constructive on Apple, with several analysts maintaining or raising targets; the current consensus is a “Moderate Buy” and a price target of $314.85.
• Apple reported strong recent results, including EPS of $2.01 versus estimates of $1.95 and revenue of $111.18 billion, while also raising its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share.

ARS Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 334,764 shares of the iPhone maker's stock after acquiring an additional 16,531 shares during the quarter. Apple makes up approximately 4.4% of ARS Investment Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. ARS Investment Partners LLC's holdings in Apple were worth $84,960,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Apple by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,426,283,914 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $387,749,545,000 after purchasing an additional 26,856,752 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Apple by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 604,056,505 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $164,218,801,000 after buying an additional 6,555,392 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Apple by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 358,032,517 shares of the iPhone maker's stock worth $97,031,587,000 after buying an additional 1,866,103 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Apple by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 230,483,035 shares of the iPhone maker's stock valued at $62,659,118,000 after buying an additional 1,379,651 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Apple in the 4th quarter valued at $52,266,468,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AAPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Apple in a report on Monday, June 8th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and set a $310.00 target price (up from $300.00) on shares of Apple in a research report on Friday, May 1st. KGI Securities lowered shares of Apple from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $315.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Apple in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $314.85.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 1,534 shares of Apple stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $421,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,675,650. This trade represents a 10.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Deirdre O'brien sold 30,002 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.35, for a total value of $7,661,010.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 136,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,934,433.50. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 97,875 shares of company stock worth $24,998,541 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Apple

Here are the key news stories impacting Apple this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s new Siri and broader AI reset is being viewed positively by analysts, with BofA reiterating a Buy rating and saying the WWDC update could strengthen Apple’s AI position and support the stock. BofA Says Apple’s (AAPL) New Siri Strategy Could Strengthen its AI Position
• Positive Sentiment: Apple’s reported chip partnership with Intel is being framed as strategically important, with investors focused on supply-chain diversification and a longer-term domestic chip roadmap that could benefit future product cycles. Apple-Intel chip deal makes strategic sense but production is years away
• Positive Sentiment: Several market commentaries say Apple shares are building toward a possible breakout, with the stock staying close to its all-time high and forming a fresh buy zone as momentum improves. Apple Stock Polishing New Buy Zone With All-Time High In Sight
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple is also drawing attention for comments from Eddy Cue about expanding entertainment offerings on Apple TV and in theaters, which supports the long-term services story but is not an immediate earnings catalyst. Apple aims for better and more entertainment offerings, executive Cue says
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are still weighing headwinds from rising memory costs and the possibility of iPhone price increases, which could pressure demand if Apple passes through higher component prices. Apple Price Hike Fears May Be Overblown, Says J.P. Morgan
• Negative Sentiment: Apple also faces legal overhang after a UK tribunal allowed a $4 billion iCloud class-action lawsuit to proceed, adding another potential regulatory and financial risk. Apple supplier Lingyi iTech prices $1.06 billion Hong Kong IPO to tap AI demand

Apple Stock Down 0.4%

Apple stock opened at $293.05 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.30 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09. Apple Inc. has a twelve month low of $199.26 and a twelve month high of $317.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a 50 day moving average of $291.83 and a 200-day moving average of $273.15.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The iPhone maker reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Apple had a net margin of 27.15% and a return on equity of 146.69%. The company had revenue of $111.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a boost from Apple's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Apple's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.06%.

About Apple

Apple Inc NASDAQ: AAPL is a multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company designs, develops and sells consumer electronics, software and services. Over its history Apple has evolved from personal computers to a broad portfolio that spans mobile devices, wearables, home entertainment and digital services.

Apple's principal hardware products include the iPhone smartphone, iPad tablet, Mac personal computers, Apple Watch wearable devices and a range of accessories such as AirPods and HomePod.

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